MSI Raider GE68 HX Review: The Uncontested King of 2025?
We got our hands on the new MSI Raider GE68 HX 16″ (A14VIG-088US). To call it “fast” is an insult. This machine isn’t just a laptop; it’s a mobile supercomputer draped in RGB lighting. With a 24-core Intel i9-14900HX and the full-power RTX 4090, it promises to shred any task you throw at it. But does it live up to the astronomical price tag? Let’s find out.
Quick Verdict: Pros & Cons
The Good Stuff (10 Pros)
- Absolutely monstrous performance from the 24-core i9-14900HX.
- Full-power 175W NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 laptop GPU.
- Stunning 16″ 240Hz 4K+ (UHD+) OLED display.
- Massive 64GB of DDR5 5600MHz RAM for extreme multitasking.
- Blazing-fast 4TB (2x2TB) NVMe Gen4 SSD in RAID 0.
- MSI’s advanced “Cooler Boost 5” thermal system.
- Premium, solid chassis with customizable Mystic Light bar.
- Per-key RGB keyboard by SteelSeries feels amazing to type on.
- Excellent port selection including Thunderbolt 4.
- MSI AI Engine for dynamic performance optimization.
The Downsides (4 Cons)
- Extremely high price tag puts it out of reach for most.
- Abysmal battery life (as expected, but still a con).
- Heavy and bulky; this is a “desktop replacement,” not an ultraportable.
- Fans can get very loud under maximum load (though effective).
Design: A Spaceship for Your Desk
The moment you unbox the MSI Raider GE68 HX, it makes a statement. This isn’t a subtle, blend-into-the-boardroom laptop. It’s a gaming rig, and it’s proud of it. The all-metal chassis feels incredibly robust and premium, with zero flex in the keyboard deck and minimal wobble in the sturdy display hinge. The subtle sandblasted finish on the black metal body resists fingerprints better than glossy counterparts, which we appreciate.
But let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the RGB. The Raider features the iconic “Mystic Light” bar across the front edge. This isn’t just a simple strip; it’s a dynamic, panoramic aurora of colors that can be customized to no end via the SteelSeries GG software. Combined with the per-key RGB keyboard, this laptop can be anything from a subtle, single-color workstation to a full-blown rave. It’s aggressive, it’s bold, and for the target audience, it’s perfect.
In terms of dimensions, it’s a beast. Weighing in at nearly 6 pounds (2.7 kg) and over an inch thick, this is not a device you’ll casually toss in a backpack for a coffee shop session. It’s a “desktop replacement” in the truest sense. It’s designed to be moved from one desk to another—from your home office to a LAN party—but not to be used on an airline tray table. The power brick is, as expected, massive, a 330W behemoth that you’ll need to account for in your travel bag. But this size and weight are purposeful; they are necessary to house the cooling system required for the components inside.
Display: The 240Hz OLED Dream
This is, without a doubt, one of the best displays ever put into a laptop. Period. MSI has equipped this model with a 16-inch 16:10 “UHD+” (3840 x 2400) OLED panel. The “OLED” part gives you what you’d expect: perfect, inky blacks, an effectively infinite contrast ratio, and jaw-droppingly vibrant colors. It covers 100% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, making it an exceptional choice for content creators who need professional-grade color accuracy for video editing and photo work.
But then, MSI added the second part of the magic formula: a 240Hz refresh rate. This is the holy grail. For years, gamers had to choose between the fast refresh rates of IPS panels and the beautiful contrast of 60Hz OLEDs. No more. Playing games like *Cyberpunk 2077* with path tracing enabled is a religious experience. The neon-lit streets of Night City pop with OLED vibrancy, while the 240Hz refresh rate (paired with the RTX 4090) provides a level of motion clarity and responsiveness that is simply unmatched. The 0.2ms response time means there is zero ghosting or smearing. It’s sharp, it’s fluid, and it’s beautiful.
The 16:10 aspect ratio is also a huge win for productivity, giving you more vertical screen real estate for timelines, code, and web pages. If the display is your number one priority, this laptop is a contender for that reason alone.
Performance: The 14900HX & RTX 4090
This is the main event. The MSI Raider GE68 HX is built around two of the most powerful mobile components ever created: the Intel Core i9-14900HX processor and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 16GB laptop GPU. The 14900HX is a 24-core, 32-thread monster that can boost up to an incredible 5.8 GHz. The RTX 4090 is running at its full 175W TGP (Total Graphics Power) with Dynamic Boost, meaning it’s not a nerfed, thermally-throttled version.
What does this mean in the real world? It means there is no game this laptop cannot run at its absolute maximum settings. At 1440p, you’re looking at triple-digit frame rates in virtually every title. At the native 4K+ resolution, you can comfortably run even the most demanding titles like *Alan Wake 2* or *Star Citizen* with high settings and DLSS, maintaining smooth, playable framerates where other laptops would simply give up. This is a 4K gaming laptop, through and through.
But it’s not just for gaming. This configuration is a content creator’s dream. The 64GB of DDR5 RAM means you can have After Effects, Premiere Pro, and 50 Chrome tabs open without a stutter. 4K and 8K video timelines scrub flawlessly. 3D rendering in Blender or V-Ray is astonishingly fast, rivaling high-end desktop PCs from just a year or two ago. The 4TB RAID 0 SSD array delivers mind-bending read/write speeds, meaning projects load instantly and files transfer in the blink of an eye. This machine doesn’t just *handle* heavy workloads; it *demolishes* them. It feels less like using a computer and more like wielding a force of nature.
Cooling: Taming the Beast
You can’t pack a 24-core CPU and a 175W GPU into a laptop chassis without a revolutionary cooling system. This is where the Raider’s “Cooler Boost 5” technology comes in. MSI has implemented a shared-pipe design with two massive fans and a large vapor chamber that covers both the CPU and GPU. This is crucial for wicking heat away from the components as fast as possible.
Does it work? Yes, exceptionally well. In our stress tests, the laptop was able to maintain its high boost clocks for extended periods without significant thermal throttling. This is a marathon runner, not just a sprinter. The keyboard and palm rest area remain comfortably warm, but not hot, thanks to smart thermal design.
The trade-off, as mentioned in the cons, is noise. When you engage “Cooler Boost” mode for maximum performance, the fans spin up to an aggressive level. It’s not a whine, but a loud, powerful “whoosh” of air. This is not a laptop for a quiet library. For any serious gaming or rendering session, a good pair of headphones is highly recommended. But this is the price of power; the system is prioritizing performance over silence, which is the correct choice for this category of machine.
The Full Experience: Keyboard & Ports
The keyboard is a collaboration with SteelSeries, and it’s excellent. The per-key RGB lighting is bright and evenly distributed, with endless customization options. More importantly, the keys themselves have a satisfying, tactile feel with good travel (1.7mm) and a responsive “thock.” It’s a joy for both typing and gaming, and the full-sized numpad is a welcome addition.
The trackpad is large and responsive, with a smooth glass surface. It’s perfectly fine for daily navigation, but let’s be honest: anyone buying this laptop will be plugging in a high-performance gaming mouse immediately.
Port selection is a major strength. You get everything you could possibly need. On the sides and back, you’ll find a Thunderbolt 4 port, a USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-C (with DisplayPort), two USB 3.2 Gen2 Type-A ports, an SD card reader, a 2.5G Ethernet jack, and an HDMI 2.1 port capable of 8K@60Hz. You can drive multiple 4K monitors, connect high-speed storage, and still have ports to spare. It’s a true workstation hub.
Final Verdict: Who is This For?
The MSI Raider GE68 HX (A14VIG-088US) is not a laptop for everyone. It’s not for the student who needs 10 hours of battery life. It’s not for the casual user who just checks email. It’s not for the traveler who values a light backpack.
This laptop is for the person who refuses to compromise. It’s for the hardcore gamer who wants to play every new release at 4K Ultra settings. It’s for the professional 3D artist, video editor, or AI developer who needs to render complex projects on the go. It’s for the enthusiast who simply wants the fastest, most powerful, and most visually stunning piece of mobile technology money can buy.
It is, in every sense, a “desktop killer.” It makes no apologies for its price, its weight, or its fan noise, because it delivers on its one singular promise: to provide the most obscene amount of performance possible in a portable (or at least “luggable”) form factor. If you have the budget and you demand the absolute best, the MSI Raider GE68 HX is not just a good choice; it’s one of the only choices. It’s an engineering marvel and an undisputed performance king.
Ready to Own the King?
You’ve read the review. You know what this machine is capable of. Don’t wait.
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